


Fairy Tail Weapon Meister Guild

by Randome013



Category: Fairy Tail
Genre: Alternate Universe, F/M, Fluff, Found Family, I'll be adding tags as I go, Slow Burn, Sometimes a bit angsty, Soul Eater AU, just fairy tail characters, meister natsu dragneel, weapon lucy heartfilia
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-05-21
Updated: 2020-06-11
Packaged: 2021-03-02 23:22:46
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 13,540
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24305089
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Randome013/pseuds/Randome013
Summary: Lucy isn't sure what she expects when she runs away from home to go to the FTWMA . What she definitely doesn't is to be greeted by an exhibitionist and a beer mug being thrown at her face. But despite her rather unexpected welcome she decides to stay. And she is so glad she did. Even if her meister is a mug-throwing pyromaniac.Soul Eater AU with Fairy Tail characters
Relationships: Natsu Dragneel & Lucy Heartfilia, Natsu Dragneel/Lucy Heartfilia
Comments: 4
Kudos: 50





	1. Chapter 1

Magnolia was even more beautiful than she’d imagined. Cute shops were scattered all across the town. Lucy almost went crazy when she found a little bookshop selling old tomes for criminally low prices. There were magnolias everywhere, the beautiful petals gently swaying in the breeze.

And the people were so incredibly kind, too! Each and every one she asked was so polite… everything was just too adorable! She looked ahead. According to that nice old lady, it should be exactly-

There!

…Wow

Lucy Heartfilia couldn’t help but stare at the building looming over her in awe.

FTWMG. Fairy Tail Weapon Meister Guild. The best-known guild in the whole of Fiore. 

She took a deep breath before entering. This was it. Now her life would finally begin. She could feel it. 

How would the guild be? Fairy Tail always advertised about being a family. She could already picture everyone hugging themselves. And looking at photo albums together. And – 

Her thoughts were interrupted by a beer mug hitting her on the face. 

“Ouch!”

“Hey, watch where you throw those, flamebrain! You almost hit the new girl!”

“Not just almost…”

She looked to her left, where the voice was coming from and stopped dead in her tracks as soon as she saw him. Or rather… it.

The boy beside her had dark blue hair and beautiful blue eyes, almost black. The dark blue guild symbol proudly displayed on his pale skin. She maybe would've swooned about his good looks if he wasn't COMPLETELY NAKED!

Lucy quickly looked away and covered her eyes. Where had she gotten herself in?! Were there only lunatics in this weird guild?! Should she… No! As crazy as her hopefully-to-be guildmates seemed, she wouldn’t go back. Not willingly. Maybe she could try Sabertooth if Fairy Tail didn’t work out? She heard that Crocus was supposed to be nice, too. It would be a pity, she was already in love with Magnolia and… 

This time she managed to evade the mug coming her way.

“IT’S NOT MY FAULT IF YOU LOOK SO STUPID ICE POPSICLE!” 

That… didn’t make any sense.

“THAT DOESN’T EVEN MAKE SENSE YOU FLAMING IDIOT!”

Great. Now she was having the same thoughts as an exhibitionist. Not even an hour in the place and she was already getting weird. She turned her back to the chaos and made a step towards the door. They were crazy. Insane. Was every guild like this?! She sure hoped not. Maybe she really should try Sabertooth, though she’d somehow had to get some money for the train ride and…

“Hi! You’re new here, right?”

She turned around. The voice belonged to a beautiful woman with long, silver hair and kind, mesmerizing blue eyes. A friendly smile grazed her face and – the best of all – she wasn’t throwing any beer mugs around. 

For a moment, Lucy considered leaving. Saying that she entered the wrong building or was just searching for the bathroom. Opening the door and running away from those aggressive lunatics in here. But the woman seemed nice enough and Lucy wasn’t one to just give up on her dreams like that. She smiled and nodded. She was sure that she wouldn't have much to do with those strange ‘flamebrain’ and ‘popsicle’ guys anyway - as long as she kept her distance everything would turn out just fine.

“I’m Mirajane. But you can just call me Mira! I’ll take you to the headmaster!”

She’d come this far for Fairy Tail. For the best guild in Fiore. For a new family.

“Yes, please!”

She wouldn’t be giving up that easily.

So she shoved any worries she had to the back of her mind and followed Mira behind the bar.

“Are they always like this?”

“You get used to it.”

Lucy laughed nervously and took another look at the warzone happening next to her. But looking closer… it suddenly didn’t seem to be so bad anymore. There was a short blue-haired girl in the corner reading… was that Soul Eater?! Lucy loved the manga about the mages going on missions in Death City. A grumpy looking man was leaning on the wall next to her. He seemed to be saying something, but she couldn't understand what. She might’ve been scared - the huge muscles paired with the piercings on every single inch of his face didn't really look inviting - if it wasn’t for the soft look on his face. On the other side of the room, there was a group of girls giggling together. And... wait- 

She glimpsed at the girl accompanying her before refocusing on one particular girl that caught her attention. Was that-

Mira followed her line of sight and smiled.

“That’s my little sister Lisanna.”

“You look so alike!”

“And you see that big guy lifting that table in the corner?”

Lucy nodded. His screams about being a man could be heard from here.

“He’s the second brother. Elfman.”

“Really?!”

Lucy blushed in embarrassment, she hadn't meant to say that aloud. But the blonde couldn’t help but be surprised. The two sisters seemed so sweet… And Elfman… well… he was throwing a table at – wasn’t that the naked popsicle guy?

Although… looking closer she could see some resemblance. He may be more tanned and buff than his sisters, but the silver hair all siblings seemed to share was hard to oversee. She was sure she would notice more little details if she was up closer.

“Yeah. He and Evergreen, that girl over there in the green dress, totally have a thing for each other. But they aren’t together – “

Suddenly Mira’s sweet smile seemed just a bit too wide and her eyes got an almost maniac glint.

“Yet.”

Lucy couldn't stop a shiver from trailing down her spine. She got the feeling that sweet Mirajane wasn’t as sweet as she seemed. And that she should never mention a boy in her presence.

Lucy wanted to ask more questions – like who that blue-haired girl was or if they had any S-Class duos – but they came to a halt before she could voice any. They now stood in front of an old wooden door littered with dens of different sizes and profundity – Lucy could only assume that the headmaster’s office was behind it. Mira knocked before giving her an apologetic smile.

"Sorry, but I have to go back to the bar. Until later, Lucy!" 

And in the next second, she was gone. Leaving Lucy alone. Alone with the headmaster. The one person that stood between her and the guildmark she so desired. She rubbed her hands against her clothes to get rid of the sweat. It didn't work.

How long had she waited now? Should she just go in? Wouldn't that be rude?

She plucked at her clothes and tried to make herself look more presentable. But there was nothing she could do. Her clothes wouldn't clean and iron themselves. Neither would they get longer. She stared at her cheap clothes as if they contained the answers to all her problems. She'd been so overwhelmed by the feeling of lightness and freedom without corsets or annoying long sleeves, she'd picked the shortest clothes she managed to get her hands on. But maybe it wasn't appropriate for a meeting with the headmaster?

How long should she keep waiting? Maybe she overheard his request to come in? But wouldn't it be worse to come in uninvited?

She retorted to fidgeting around. She was nervous for an entirely different reason now. The admission letter. Sure, she had sent hers before going. But she hadn’t stayed long enough to see if she had actually been taken. What if she hadn’t been accepted? She didn’t have any money anymore. Oh, Shinigami. Would she have to live on the streets?! What if she entered the office and the headmaster looked at her with that look in the eyes she was trying to escape from and told her that she wasn’t qualified that she was a nothing that she should go back to being a little spoiled princess and – 

“Enter!”

Lucy took a deep breath. She went all the way here. She could do this. She _would_ do this. 

She opened the door. The squeaking sound almost seemed foreboding. 

The blonde took a last calming breath before stepping into the - empty office?

Another squeak made her look ahead. The huge swivel chair in front of her was slowly turning around. It was so big it almost looked like a throne. It was as imposing as one, at least. Her anxiety spiked again. She could already see it. He would be huge and menacing and would barely take a look at her before throwing her back out on the streets where she be-

She stopped dead in her tracks when she caught a glimpse of exactly _who_ was sitting on it.

“Yo!”

She almost laughed. This tiny man was the person she had been so terrified about? This tiny old man wearing this ridiculous blue and orange hat? And… was he staring at her boobs?!

“Excuse me, headmaster, sir. But my eyes are up here.”

He slowly looked up. And suddenly she got scared. Oh, Shinigami. She had been so disrespectful. Too disrespectful. He wouldn’t even look at her before –

He looked her in the eye. And he smiled. A gentle yet happy smile, with way more vitality than she would’ve thought possible for such an old man. It was almost… paternal. A face flashed in her mind. Stiff blond hair. Grim face. Cold brown eyes. Always serious. Always disappointed.

“Who are you, my child?”

Suddenly she felt incredibly pathetic. How desperate was she? She barely knew this man and was already comparing him with her father? Was she that futile? 

“L-Lucy”

That old man had never seen her before. He hadn’t even known of her existence mere minutes ago. Only because he had a bright smile, didn’t mean he wanted to be her father. He wouldn’t even smile at her like that if he knew her better. 

She looked back up to the man in front of her. He was looking at her questioningly.

Shinigami, was he expecting an answer from her?! She wasn’t even a minute in his office and she was already messing up. How had she ever thought that it could be a good idea to do this? 

She remembered the office. Always closed. The mansion. Always empty. The dresses. Always too tight. _A woman must be seen, not heard._ She pressed her nails against her hand. It hurt. It felt good.

The truth was, she didn’t care. After a while, she didn’t care that she barely saw her father. She didn’t care what he thought of her. After a while, she didn’t care what would happen if she left.

So she did.

As much as she hated to admit it, as much as she tried to be like mama. Deep down she knew. She was incredibly selfish. She had anything most girls could only dream of. Jewelry. Money. Dresses. Maids. A castle.

And yet, she wanted more.

And the worst thing was, she didn’t regret it. Even with her father’s sad eyes in her mind. Even knowing that she wasn’t suited for this life. That she was boring. And stupid. That she should be _heard but not seen_.

She didn't regret a single thing.

She was an awful person.

But she wouldn’t be going back.

She was brought back to the present by the headmaster saying… something. She flushed in embarrassment. Really a great first impression, Lucy.

“Excuse me, could you please repeat your question, headmaster?”

He laughed. It was just as open as his smile. She suddenly got the need to see more of it. No subdued smiles and fake laughs. Just a genuinely happy one. Just because.

“No need to be so formal, Lucy, my child. Just call me Makarov. So, what brings you here to the FTWMG?”

His words echoed in her mind.

_My child._

She got a warm feeling in her chest. One she normally connected with beautiful golden hair, laugh lines, and sweet smiles.

Shinigami, she really was pathetic.

She took a deep breath. Everything depended on this. She could do this. This friendly old man with the bright smile wouldn’t just throw her out. Right? _Right?_

“I want to enter the Guild.”

He said nothing. Only stared at her with serious eyes.

Oh, Shinigami. _Oh, Shinigami._ She was too rude. How dare she just make that request as if she owned the place? And she was talentless anyways. The man with the bright smiles wouldn’t be smiling anymore and he would throw her out like she deserved if she was completely honest with herself and –

“Lucy. You know that the start of the school year was last week, right? And everyone is supposed to have a partner by tomorrow.”

Her eyes widened.

She… she didn’t know that. Shinigami. She was so stupid. Dumb and naïve and stupid. Her father was right, how could she – 

“Are you a meister or a weapon?”

The sound of his voice took her back to reality. She used his cheerful smile to ground herself. She was tired and scared and she _would_ go through this without having a breakdown. 

She forced a smile upon her face and answered.

“Weapon.”

Silence. He looked at her expectantly. Was she supposed to say something? Was this a test or something? Was she too incompetent to – 

STOP!

She remembered a sentence she read in a book once.

_I’m not my thoughts._

She repeated it in her head like a mantra.

_I’m not my thoughts._

_I’m not my thoughts._

She almost didn’t hear what he asked next.

“What weapon are you, dear?”

She paused for a moment. She knew that that question would come sooner rather than later.

She knew how weird it was. How different. How _unladylike_.

But she was here to learn. And she would be damned if something as stupid as her nerves stopped her.

_I’m not my thoughts._

“…shotgun.”

“Could you repeat, dear? A bit louder, please.”

“I-I’m a shotgun”

He took another look at her. From her blonde hair (oily from not being washed for over a week) to her brown eyes with huge bruises underneath (only sleeping in trains had taken its toll on her), to her clothes (unwashed and wrinkled) and finally her leather boots (a present from Spetto).

“Normally we take more traditional weapons like swords.”

She gave a small nod and looked at the ground. Nothing in this insecure girl before him would make him think that there was a shotgun of all things inside her.

But again, he got the feeling that she wasn’t normally like that.

“Can I see it?”

She nodded before reluctantly stretching out her arm. She furrowed her brows in concentration and - after a few nerve-wracking seconds - her skin started morphing into metal. Within a second her whole forearm had transformed into the barrel of a shotgun. The muzzle almost seemed to be staring into his eyes.

He nodded and, in the next moment, the barrel was a completely normal arm again.

“Say, Lucy. Before I make a definite decision, I want to know more about your situation at home.”

Her eyes widened. Why did he want to know? Had he somehow recognized her? Was he going to send her back? Should she lie? No, she got the feeling he would know it if she did. And he wouldn’t appreciate it. What should she do? Tell the truth? But what if – 

“Lucy? Please answer the question, dear.”

She took a deep breath. 

It didn’t help.

_What if he sends me home or what if he calls my dad to come here or what if he realizes what a selfish prick i really am and decides i’m not worth it orhwatiforwhatif._

I’m not my thoughts.

_Whatifwhatifwhatifwhatif_

My thoughts don’t define me.

She repeated the mantra in her head again and again. And again. And again and again and again.

5 seconds. She'd give herself 5 seconds to calm down. 

Breathe in.

Breathe out.

Breathe in, until she's so full of air her chest almost feels constricted.

Breathe out, calmly and slowly.

She would tell the truth. She had no choice. The headmaster wasn’t a weapon like her. She’d just have to shoot her way out if he wanted to return her.

He was looking at her questioningly. She gave a small nod - to reassure herself or him, she wasn't really sure.

She attempted a small smile and was surprised when it came easier than expected. 

Then she told him everything.

She kept it brief at first. But he was staring at her. Just looking in silence. With those friendly eyes…

Before she knew it, she had dumped her whole life story on him.

The silence that followed afterward was the tensest she had felt in a while.

Why wasn’t he saying anything?

She didn’t know how long they stayed like that. Him just staring at her. It could’ve been mere seconds or hours. It sure felt like an eternity.

_Why isn’t he saying anything?! Oh, Shinigami, she had messed up she had messed up so bad she should’ve just lied and -_

“Lucy?”

“Y-yeah?”

This was the most serious she’d ever seen the old man before her. She somehow got the feeling that that wasn’t a very common occasion.

“I know that you won’t believe me, but you aren’t boring or bland or dumb or better off silent. And you are definitely worth every time and love of the world. Your father was hurt by your mother’s death, but that is no excuse to treat his own daughter like that. I hope that your new family here will help you realize that.”

She stared at him with big eyes. She could feel something wet trailing down her cheek. Was she… crying?

_Your new family here_

“Does that mean that- that I can… stay?”

He smiled and nodded.

“And I’ve already got the perfect partner”

oOo

After finishing some more paperwork Lucy had finally been able to rest. The hard infirmary beds weren’t exactly what one could call very comfortable – especially if compared with the huge king-sized bed filled with pillows and plushies she used to sleep in in the mansion. But at that moment – after weeks of sleeping in trains and broke motels – it felt like heaven. 

She made it. She was officially a student in Fairy Tail. 

She would’ve felt surprised by how quickly she fell asleep if she wasn’t already succumbing to the darkness.

oOo

When she finally woke up, the sun was already high in the sky. She buried her head under the pillow and groaned. She wanted to enjoy every second she had left. Surely her maids soon would – 

The thought made her sit up abruptly. She looked out the window again. It had to be around… noon?! Shit. Where were the maids? Why didn’t they wake her up? Oh, Shinigami now she was going to be late and her father was – 

“Oh, Shinigami! Did I forget to close the roller blind? I’m so sorry! Did it wake you up?”

She almost jumped when a warm hand was suddenly on her shoulder.

“Lucy? You okay?”

She clenched the sheets with her fist. 5 seconds. She’d give herself 5 seconds.

_Breathe in._

The mattress was too hard to be her huge bed in the mansion.

_Breathe out._

This room was smaller than hers.

_In._

She ran.

_Out._

Her father was weeks away. Maybe he hadn’t even noticed her absence yet.

_In._

She was in the FTWMG. She had made it. 

She slowly let her breath out of her nose. The tight grip she had on the sheets lessened. She turned to the familiar voice and faced her with a smile.

“Hey, Mira! Sorry! I-I’m still waking up.”

The silver-haired beauty frowned but said nothing.

“And the windows aren’t a problem at all! I probably would’ve woken up soon either way. What time is it, anyway?”

Mira’s smile returned, but the worried glint in her eyes didn’t leave. 

“It’s 12.30”

Lucy blanched as soon as the meaning of the words entered her still slow-working mind.

“12.30?!”

“Do you normally wake up soon, too? But it did good for you! You already look much more awake!”

“I…”

Now that she thought about it… had she ever… slept in? Just laid in bed knowing that no maids or alarms would force her to get out?

Thankfully, she didn’t have to answer. Unfortunately, it was because her stomach grumbled impossibly loud. She blushed. How embarrassing…

“E-Excuse m-“

Mira only laughed.

“Don’t worry, Lucy! I can quickly whip something up for you!”

Lucy smiled thankfully. She couldn’t wait to eat something that wasn’t fast food. While she had been mesmerized by this incredibly unhealthy and cheap food in the beginning – although a bit disappointed when she saw an original live McDonald’s burger for the first time, it wasn’t like the picture at all, a sad copy at best – the magic had soon worn out after weeks of only eating in Mc’s, BK’s and KFC’s. And – worst of all – she became fat. She could almost see her father's disappointed look in her mind. She would only be eating salad and water if she was in the mansion, no doubt in that. She would’ve become a bit dressing for her salad if she was lucky.

“What do you want?”

She ran away so she could be her own person. So she could be _heard_ , not just seen. So she could make her own decisions. But... could she really afford the stake she was craving? She looked down. Her stomach was growling again. But – 

“ARE YOU FINALLY AWAKE PARTNER?”

Her dilemma was interrupted by a boy – her partner apparently – storming into the infirmary.

When Makarov had told her about Natsu, an orphan specialized in firearms he took in as a little child and had been training ever since she’d imagined a serious and polite mass of muscles.

Natsu Dragneel was the exact opposite of that.

The thing that first caught her eyes was his hair. Bright pink. While he definitely had some muscles, he had a slimmer figure than she’d imagined. His skin was tanned and littered with scars of every size. He had to be about her age, maybe a bit older. His eyes were so dark they almost seemed black. And… his eyebrows were pink, too? She frowned. Did he dye his eyebrows?! Or was it maybe his natural hair color? She honestly wasn’t sure which one would be weirder.

She could hear a faint “Leave the poor girl alone, you flaming idiot!” coming from downstairs.

She looked at the intruder again. No way…

“So _you’re_ the ‘flaming idiot’?!”

“Hey!”

Her eyes widened. She hadn’t meant to actually say that out loud. What if he hated her now?

“S-Sorry”

He only laughed. His laugh was even more bright than the headmasters.

“I was kidding, Lucy! Grow some backbone!”

Any worries she could have about him hating her were replaced by annoyance.

“Hey! That’s rich coming from the guy who threw a beer mug at me the second I entered this damn building!”

For a second there was silence.

Oh, Shinigami she had messed up. Not even into the first mission and she already messed up. She let her emotions get the best of her again and she knew that she should control herself better her father had told that again and again but she didn’t and now –

He laughed.

Even louder than before.

“As if my weapon could be taken down by a beer mug!”

Her relief was immense. She hadn’t messed up. And she didn’t have to control herself. Not anymore. She ran away to be herself. And she would. 

Step by step.

She got the feeling that the most emotional version of herself wouldn’t even come close to her partner in regards to craziness anyways.

And in exactly that moment her stomach decided to complain again. Loudly.

She flushed in embarrassment. 

And was surprised when she got an even louder grumbling in return.

“LET’S GO EAT PARTNER!”

In the next second, she was getting dragged out of bed.

“Wait a minute, Natsu-chan.”

A deadly aura appeared behind them. Both of them slowly turned around. Lucy blanched in fear. She couldn’t believe that was the same woman who had been worried about waking her up not even an hour ago.

And suddenly, as fast as it had appeared, the death intent vanished and the sweet smiling Mirajane was back.

“You weren’t going to drag Lucy out in her pyjamas, were you?”

Lucy wanted to bury a hole and die in embarrassment. Shinigami, she hadn’t even noticed that she was still in her nighties. If it wasn’t for Mira…

Natsu gulped.

“O-Of course not, Mira. Ma’am. I-I’ll just wait outside. See ya in five!”

And he was gone as quickly as he had arrived.

“Your clothes are here. I washed them and everything. There is a bathroom down that corridor, so you can change there. I’ll be going downstairs, okay? You’re going to eat out with Natsu, right?”

Lucy nodded.

“Okay, so I won’t prepare anything. If you need anything, just scream. The walls are thin.”

She was about to get her change of clothes when Mira gave her the best news she’d heard today.

“Oh, there’s a bathtub in the bathroom, too, so…”

Lucy was gone before the woman could finish her sentence. The last thing she heard was something about some all-you-can-eat.

oOo

Lucy sighed in contentment. She hadn’t realized how much she’d missed a good old bubble bath until now. She thought back to when she used to bath every day. She was never taking anything for granted ever again.

When she stepped outside the bathroom, the now rested, cleaned and freshly dressed girl felt like new.

She started descending the stairs to the main hall. Mira really hadn’t been lying about the thin walls. Even on the second floor, Lucy could still hear what was going on below. She had even been able to distinguish a few sentences. She’d heard somebody saying something about Percy Jackson – another book series she absolutely loved – and couldn’t help but to think of the little blue-haired girl with Soul Eater she’d seen reading in the corner yesterday.

She had barely reached the last step when suddenly a blur of pink was barreling towards her. Before she could even scream in shock, her partner stopped mere centimeters from her nose.

“I’m hungry.”

And then he grabbed her arm and dragged her behind him as he talked about an amazing all-you-can-eat that had recently opened.

The last Lucy saw of the guild was Mira waving at her and the ‘ice popsicle’ guy from yesterday looking at her in pity – and half-naked. 

oOo

She should’ve known. Should’ve known when their first interaction was of him throwing a beer mug at her. Should’ve known when the waiters almost trembled in fear when Natsu entered the restaurant.

But some part of her still had to be clinging to the stoic orphan she had imagined when the Headmaster had told her about her meister.

She watched in disgust as he shoved half a plate into his mouth at once. 

One of his ten plates. 

The waiters’ horrified look made sense now.

She took a bite of her own dish – she hadn’t been able to resist the heavenly looking spaghetti in the end – before refocusing on Natsu. She was here on a mission, after all. 

She wanted to get to know her partner better. Best case scenario: they were already best friends after this lunch and she wouldn’t have to worry about a place to live anymore. She knew that it wasn’t exactly _appropriate_ to live with a boy, but she’d rather live with her partner – no matter the gender – than on the streets. Fuck appropriate.

And worst case… She didn’t want to think about that.

“Sooo, you said you specialized in firearms, right? Even though the headmaster said that Fairy Tail specializes in more typical weapons like Katanas and stuff.”

He nodded enthusiastically.

Lucy almost ran in disgust when he opened his mouth. Giving a perfect view on the food he’d just chewed. Was he really going to answer _while_ inhaling his food?! 

“Uhm, that’s cool. Yeah, pretty awesome, actually. I probably wouldn’t be here if it weren’t for you, so thank you. Really. I literally traveled weeks to get here. You know, there were some closer guilds where I used to live, but I always liked Fairy Tail. I’ve heard that everyone in Fairy Tail is like family, is that true? Ah- no. No need to answer! Not at all! Just continue eating!”

She was rambling by now. But anything was better than him talking at the moment. She took another bite of her Spaghetti and quickly continued before he got the idea to somehow add to the conversation.

“Ok, so. Uhm. Have you actually ever shot with a shotgun? Ok, stupid question. You probably did. Since that’s kinda your specialty and stuff. But I have to warn you that I never had a meister before. And I never had much chance to train, either. My fa- someone.”

She quickly stuffed some more spaghetti in her mouth to try to cover up her little slip. On her weeks outside of the mansion, she had had the chance to see lots of fathers interacting with their children. Scolding them in the streets. Saying goodbye at the train station. Willingly spending time with them. Telling them how they loved them. Affection in their eyes.

Seeing all those families talking and the headmaster’s paternal laugh, she was beginning to realize that _Jude_ had not been much of a father in the first place.

She was ripped from her thoughts by hacking. Her hacking. She hadn’t even realized that she’d started inhaling her dish as fast as Natsu. But whatever trick Natsu had to devour his food that way without chocking, she wasn’t privy. She glared at him when he only laughed as she almost died in front of him. 

A great partner she had.

“Anyways. I would much rather be something more elegant than a shotgun. Like a katana or something. But what can you do, right? It’s not like you can choose which weapon you are. Shinigami, you can’t even choose if you _want_ to be a weapon or not.”

He frowned at her and opened his mouth – giving a great view of the whole steak in it. Yuck. 

“Yeah, and. Uh. We’re partners now, right? Which means that you will wield me in missions and we will train together and live together and share some classes and everything.”

He only raised a brow. She looked down at her noodles to hide her blush. Of course he knew all that. He literally grew up in a guild for Shinigami’s sake.

“I was actually hoping I could maybe move into your house? Like… today? Oh, no! You don’t have to answer now! Just… uh… think a bit about it. The dorms are full and I don’t have money to afford a hotel – I’m pretty sure that jerk screwed with me, my jewelry was worth way more than he gave me – and we could get to know each other better and everything. But I-I don’t want to be a hindrance or anything! So”

He laughed.

Her first reaction was to protect her face with her hands. When no chewed food came flying in her direction, she carefully peeked between her fingers.

He was already finished. He managed to eat ten plates in – she gave a quick glance at the clock – 15 minutes. Wow.

She used the pause to eat a bit more of her delicious spaghetti. But he didn’t stop laughing. Even when she was halfway done with her plate, he was still roaring as if she’d just told him the funniest joke he’d ever heard.

She could feel the vein in her forehead starting to throb. 

“What is so funny?”

“It’s just, pfff, you’re so WEIRD! Hahahaha!”

“…oh”

She looked down in shame. The pasta on her plate suddenly didn’t seem so appealing anymore. She should’ve shut up. Why couldn’t she just shut her damn mouth?! This was her only chance. And just because she couldn’t control herself it was slipping through her fingers. Maybe her fa- Jude had been right. A lady should be seen, not hear-

“But that’s better than boring! I like ya!”

“huh?”

All she could do was stare at him dumbfounded. 

“I like ya Lushii-“

“It’s Lu _cy_ -“

He kept talking as if he hadn’t heard her. She got the feeling that wouldn’t be the last time that happened in the future. 

“-so of course you can stay at my house! I’m sure Happy will love you, too!”

She was so caught up in the ' _you can stay in my house and aren’t homeless!'_ -part, she almost missed the last bit.

“Great! But, uh, who is Happy?”

She could only hope they weren’t a stripper. Or enjoyed throwing things around like their roommate did.

“Happy’s my cat! He’s super-hyper-awesome! You’re gonna love him!”

She smiled relieved. A cute little cat. She could work with that.

“And it’s ‘cuz they’re awesome!”

“…huh?”

“Your question, weirdo! Why I chose to specialize in firearms! Because they’re awesome! It’s already in the name: _fire_ -arms!”

She was blushing for an entirely different reason now.

“R-Really?”

She remembered how she always wished to be something else. Something more elegant like a sabre. Something beautiful, like a phurba. Seen, but not heard.

The shotgun she was, was the exact opposite of that. The outside just dull metal. A loud bang every time she fired.

So _unladylike._

She laughed. And wasn’t that exactly what she wanted?

“Yeah, I’m pretty awesome, huh?”

The “hell yeah” she got in return only widened her smile. 

And suddenly she felt so immensely glad.

Glad for running away. Glad for staying in Fairy Tail, even after the unexpected welcome. Glad for telling the headmaster the truth. Glad to have a meister. A partner. A person she could always count on. A person to trust with her life.

Glad that Natsu Dragneel was the exact opposite of what she’d imagined. 

The rest of the lunch was spent laughing and joking and talking.

When was the last time she had so much fun?

Her worries had never seemed so far away. 


	2. Chapter 2

“You´re quite the slowpoke, aren’t ya?”

Lucy would’ve glared at Natsu – her _meister_ , she still had to get used to that – if she wasn’t still processing what just happened. She – Lucy Heartfilia, the heiress of the Heartfilia Empire, who had endured endless boring manner and pleasantry lessons practically ever since she was born – had been thrown out of a restaurant. Scratch that, she had been _banned_ out of the restaurant. _Forever_. Because of her _meister_. And the worst – besides the embarrassment of being yelled at by the head of the all-you-can-eat and being stared at by every single customer and worker, none of who even tried to hide judgment in their eyes – was that it apparently wasn’t the first time something like this happened. 

And Makarov entrusted him with a _shotgun_.

When she had run away, she had had no idea what she was getting herself into.

“We really have to work on your stamina. How are we gonna go on missions if even Happy can outrun you?”

He said it jokingly – when wasn’t he joking? She was a bit curious about how he looked like when completely serious – but she could see that he meant it. The blonde could only hope that the determined glint in his eyes didn’t mean he wanted to train her himself – if he approached her training like he did everything else (going completely overboard), she wasn’t sure how long she would survive.

“Hey! Not everyone here grew up training!”

She hadn’t seen Happy yet, but she had a pretty clear picture of Natsu’s cat (seriously, he talked about his pet as if it was his son. She had almost expected him to take out an album with embarrassing baby pictures). Happy was lazy and loved fish. That seemed to be the key features of his personality. It wasn’t too hard picturing what a snoozy and overfed cat would look like – fat. Apparently, he was also supposed to be blue. She had assumed he meant a cold tone of grey, but she couldn’t be sure – this was a guy with pink eyebrows they were talking about, after all.

He only blew her a raspberry and opened the guild doors – read: smashed them open -, loudly announcing his presence. This seemed to be a pretty normal occurrence, barely anyone looked up from whatever they were doing. All they got were a few scattered “Hey Natsu” 

Or that was until the brunette looked up.

She was beautiful. Her dark eyes seemed to have an almost violet hue. Her wavy hair fell behind her shoulder, two strands cupping her cheerful face. She was only wearing a bikini top – or at least Lucy hoped it was a bikini. Was exhibitionism infectious?

But any good first impression she had of the girl was immediately ruined as soon as she opened her mouth.

“Oi, Natsu! Who’s blondie over there? You got some nice racks, gurl!”

And suddenly everybody was staring at her. 

Lucy could now understand how these seemingly peaceful teenagers were capable of killing kishin. It was an onslaught. One second everyone had been doing their own thing and most didn’t even acknowledge her existence. The next, they were all hovering over her like a pack of hungry wolves. And she was the prey. 

Instead of bullets, battle cries and stabs, they attacked with greetings, hugs and jokes. And lots of questions.

She tried to answer them as good as possible: her name was Lucy; yes, she was a new student here; no, she wasn’t a meister; yes, she was Natsu’s weapon; no, o-of course not! They absolutely definitely weren’t a couple – she barely knew him! (she got a bit red with the latter one); she was a shotgun; no! Of course they couldn’t t-touch her boobs! (seriously, what was wrong with this guild?!)

Lucy could recognize a few familiar faces, Mira’s sister – Lisanna was it? –, the exhibitionist and, of course, the brunette from before. 

The mansion had always been quiet. Empty. Lonely. She’d always wanted exactly _this_. Loud laughter and conversation and just… genuineness. She ran to find the exact opposite of the estate. And here it was! Right here in front of her! Carelessness, laughter, screaming, genuineness, joy. Everything she wanted! Everything she had expected from Fairy Tail, the guild that was supposed to be family. Heck, even more than she’d expected!

So why was she so overwhelmed? Why was she feeling as if she was suffocating? Why was it getting harder to breathe? Why was she looking for an escape? Why wasn’t she… happier?

Maybe her father had been right. Maybe she really didn’t belong here –

No. She had left to find a new family. She had left to enter a guild. And, against all odds, she had actually made it! She even had a meister now! Why wouldn’t she be feeling happy?! No, _ecstatic_ even. She had escaped her father! She accomplished everything she wanted!

She had arrived. Finally, _home_. A new family – one that not only acknowledgedher but even wanted to get to knowher. So why wasn’t she feeling more... peaceful? Why wasn’t she overjoyed?

Air. She needed some fresh air. Yeah, of course. Her discomfort had nothing to do with the fact that she didn’t belong. She wasn’t getting overwhelmed. She was _enjoying_ this. She wanted more. Definitely. That the faces were starting to blur together and the questions were becoming loud indistinct screeching only meant she needed some fresh air. Her headache had nothing to do with her guildmates. Her new family. She just ran through half the town and the air here was stuffy. Yes, that was all.

“Guys, I just need to –“

She was drowned out by more screaming. More hugs. More laughter. Human contact. Genuineness. Just like she wanted. Yes, this dizziness was because of _happiness_. 

Suddenly everyone was staring at her – even Mirajane. She could see a few guildmembers moving their mouths, but everything was strangely… muffled. Why was it so quiet all of a sudden? Why was everybody was staring at her as if expecting her to do something? Was she supposed to say something? Do something? Was this some kind of initiation ritual? Was she failing? What – 

Air. She needed air.

“B-bathroom.”

She wasn’t sure if anyone heard. She didn’t care. 

Air. She just needed some fresh air. Everything would be fine if she could just _breathe_.

She took off. She didn’t even acknowledge how the other teens got out of her way. She didn’t notice the worried frowns or whispers. All she knew was that she had to get away. Somewhere private. Air. _Now._

“Oi, Lucy! You’re going in the wrong direction, sweetheart!”

She turned around and all but ran towards where she assumed the bathroom was. She hoped her hair was hiding her flushed face. She ignored the “have fun!” and catcalls. _Air._ She just needed some air.

She was glad nobody else was in the bathroom. She ran straight to the sink and turned it on. It didn't have any warm water, but Lucy couldn’t complain. Cold was better anyway. 

She almost moaned in relief when the water touched her skin. She was already feeling better. It _was_ fresh air. Just like she’d thought.

She turned off the sink and looked in the mirror. Her whole face was bright red – if from the running earlier or being the center of attention she wasn’t sure. Her lashes were littered with waterdrops and her hair – she’d forgotten to tie them in her desper- in her hurry – was downright wet. 

She looked like a mess.

The blonde brushed a sticky strand away from her forehead and carefully peeked over the door. Everything seemed to be back to normal. 

Obviously. What had she expected? For the entire guild to be hovering in front of the bathroom? That that brunette entered and actually carried out her threat of squishing her “racks”?

And even if that was the case, it wouldn’t be a problem. No. Not at all. If this was how normal people who weren’t runaways of rich families behaved, who was she to question it? She would just adapt. And it wasn’t a bad thing. After only one meal with Natsu, she already felt as if they were best friends! The guild was great! She would fit right in! She _had_ to!

Lucy glanced at the stairs, leading up to the infirmary. Where her stuff was. It wouldn’t be the end of the world if she went to get it, right? This was the whole reason she and Natsu had come here in the first place, after all. To get her – admittedly few, she’d have to buy more soon – stuff and bring it to his house. She took another look at the guildhall. Nobody seemed to be focused on her. Not that it mattered. She wasn’t running away or anything. She couldn’t wait to be back there. Back with her family. Because that was what they were. Family. And one that actually _cared_ for her. She couldn’t wait for them to embrace her again. Hugging her and talking to her and screaming and cornering –

She shook her head, trying to free it from her stupid thoughts and started walking _normally_ – she definitely wasn’t trying to stay as inconspicuous as possible or even _slink_. Just like she didn’t look back every five seconds to make sure that nobody was watching her as she made her way upstairs. Pff. Ridiculous. She was just getting her stuff. There was nothing wrong with that.

The thankfully – no, unfortunately. She would’ve loved to start a conversation now, just like everybody else in the guild seemed to – empty infirmary was a bit depressing, to say the least. The only specks of color in the otherwise white room were a picture saying “Break a Leg!”– she assumed it was meant to be ironic – and a torn poster saying to “hang on”. The kitten hanging on a tree branch with its little paws looked strangely… blue? Well, who was she to question it. She let her gaze wander through the room. Finding her pink backpack should be pretty easy…

So why wasn’t she seeing it anywhere?

She took the whole room in. Again. And again. And again. White walls. Six white beds. "Break a Leg!”. “Hang on”. Two windows on the farthest wall. White cabinets – probably filled with medication. White walls. But no pink bag. 

She went to the bed she had slept in. Nothing. She looked at the little table next to it. She looked under it. Nothing.

Maybe she had the wrong bed? She let her gaze sweep through the room again. No. The left one next to the windows – this was the right one. She was sure of it. 

She looked again. Under the pillow. Below the mattress. In the little corner between the bed and the wall.

Nothing.

She was growing restless now. Fairy Tail… Fairy Tail wouldn’t rob her. Right? No. Of course not. She shook her head and refocused on the task at hand. Searching. She just hadn’t looked properly. She nodded to herself. She just had to search more.

So she did. She looked under every bed. In every hidden corner. Even in the cabinets.

Nothing. 

She could feel the tears rising. The clothes she could live without. Sure, she would like to keep them, for symbolic reasons if nothing else – the first clothes she actually _chose_ to wear. She could even get by without the money – she would probably have to borrow some and she hated to be in debt, but she would manage. It wasn’t even the bag per se, although she would miss her cute little key chain she secretly called Plue. What she _would_ miss – the one irreplaceable thing she brought, the one thing worth taking from the entire damned estate – was the picture. A family portrait. The last one before her mother got ill and everything fell apart. 

She couldn’t lose it. 

She looked under the beds again. Maybe she’d missed it? She threw the bedding on the floor. She opened all cabinets, knocking over a few medicaments in her desperation. Nothing.

She knew it was hopeless. She had already searched the whole room. But she couldn’t stop. She _needed_ that picture.

She had been so young. The memories of her mother were already foggy. She didn’t want to forget her. She didn’t want to forget how her dad had been before she died. The picture was all she had.

So she looked under the beds. Again. She even looked out the window. Nothing. She went to the furthest wall and took in the whole room. Again. Nothing. Again. She barely noticed the first tears that escaped her tight grasp. She slowly slipped down the wall until she was sitting on the floor. Who was she kidding? This was ridiculous. _She_ was ridiculous. The floor was cold, sending goosebumps down her leg. Lucy didn’t care. She was _pathetic._ The blonde started quivering, but it had nothing to do with the cold. The picture wasn’t going to appear if she stared at the floor hard enough. 

Just like she wouldn’t belong into Fairy Tail if she told herself often enough. 

She couldn’t stop the sob from escaping her if she tried. 

What was she even doing here? The portrait clearly wasn't here. She clearly didn't belong to Fairy Tail. Maybe it would be better if she just lef-

She almost screamed in shock when a cool hand suddenly appeared on her shoulder. She tried to quickly dry her tears – not that it helped much, they probably already heard her sobbing and the tears just wouldn’t stop falling. She was about to look up to see who the hand belonged to, when a sudden thought made her stop dead in the tracks.

What had Mira said earlier again? The walls were thin. Very thin. And she hadn’t been exactly quiet with her sobbing and – oh Shinigami. What if they heard her downstairs? Not even a day in the guild and she was already crying without apparent reason? It would explain why this person was here. And only them – the rest were probably laughing at her. But the worst was, she couldn’t even resent them for it. She was pathetic after all. And Natsu… Another wave of tears overcame her when thinking of her pink-haired friend. Yeah, after only one day she already considered him to be her friend. Pathetic. Those hands were too cold to be his. And too big to be Mira’s. He just talked to her because he had to. It hadn’t been _his_ choice to become her partner, after all. And now he was probably laughing with the others. Telling how ridiculous she had been in the restaurant, almost dying because if stupid spaghetti. _They_ just talked to her because they had to. And could she really blame them? She was pathetic and weak and stupid and should be seen, but not heard and boring and bland and – 

“Hey, hey. Calm down”

– stupid for thinking this could ever work out – why would she, a rich and spoiled and selfish runaway be welcome in such an amazing guild as Fairy Tail? Maybe staying alone in the mansion was what she deserved because what daughter in her right mind would just abandon her father and the thought of him, crying and overworking like when her mother had died but this time because of _her_ made another sob rip through her and Shinigami, she was pathetic and they were all listening to her in the bar and laughing and – 

“Hey. Lucy. Look at me.”

\- she was a coward and selfish and weak and stupid and pathetic and 

“Hey.”

A cold hand carefully raised her chin, until she was staring at dark blue – yeah, almost black – eyes.

“You- you okay?”

Lucy needed a second to process the question. She wasn’t sure if she could answer without her voice breaking or starting to sob again, so she just nodded. She took a deep breath. She would not break down in front of her guildmate. 

_A bit too late for that, isn’t it?_

She forced the thought away – she knew she wouldn’t be able to stop her tears if she went down _that_ road again – focusing on his eyes instead to ground herself. She could do this.

“What happened? It looks like a fucking tornado went through here.”

She didn’t answer. Now she could see why his eyes were so dark, they were splintered with little specks of black. Looking closer, his eyes seemed more greyish than blue. 

“Do you – do you want to talk about it?”

She took another shaky breath before shaking her head. She didn’t dare take her eyes off of his. She may be a wreck right now, but she wasn’t so stupid to tell her guildmate how pathetic she was. Even _if_ he disagreed, she knew it would be only out of pity. 

“Shit, I’m bad at this. Do you – do you want a hug?”

Her breathing was becoming less shaky now. She slowly let the air out of her lungs before answering.

“Okay.”

Her eyes widened. She wanted to _refuse_ , not to ask for it with a still pathetically weak voice. But before she could correct herself, he was already enveloping her in his arms and pressing her against him.

She slowly relaxed into the hug. Normally she wouldn’t be so intimate with a person she practically just met. Especially if that person seemed to have a tendency for walking around naked. But it was just so… comforting. 

Her only human contact in the mansion had been when the maids dressed her with those heavy monstrosities called dresses. Lucy hadn’t even realized how much she missed such a basic thing as simple closeness. She could feel the tears rising again. 

When was the last time she had been hugged?

She couldn’t help but comparing this hug to her mothers. It was one of the few things she could remember clearly. Her warmth – different from her and her father, who were always cold. Her long blonde hair tickling against Lucy’s face. The smell of her perfume – roses – invading her nose. Her consoler was cold. The iron cross he seemed to always wear around his neck was digging uncomfortably into her skin. Still. It just felt so… soothing. In a different way.

A tear fell, trailing down her cheek. Another followed. The next thing she knew, she was sobbing again. 

Her face was covered in snot and she was probably dirtying him. She didn’t care. She was breaking down in front of her guildmate. She didn’t care. She wasn’t even sure why she was crying. Was it because she didn’t fit in with Fairy Tail? Was it because she was weak? Weak and pathetic and cowardly? Was it because she left the mansion? Without even saying goodbye? Was it because of her dad? Because of her mum? Of the perfect little family she lost way too soon? 

“Psshhh. Let it all out.”

She didn’t care. All that she knew were the sobs wracking her body. Her sore throat and aching belly. All she knew was that she was being hugged by a stranger and she didn’t care.

oOo

“Do you want to go downstairs?”

She shook her head. Lucy couldn’t face them. Not now.

They were seated next to each other, below the windows. Both were looking up ahead with their backs leaned against the wall. Lucy wasn’t sure how long she cried. It could be mere minutes or whole hours. Her throat was still a bit sore and her sides and her eyes were aching after all the sobbing. But she felt… better. Somewhat lighter. 

She glanced at the boy next to her. And immediately looked the other way with flushed cheeks.

“Why aren’t you wearing any clothes?!”

She hid her face between her hands. This was so inappropriate. She could only imagine what the scene would look like for an outsider. Two people stayed for a suspicious amount of time in a room both had no business being. Shinigami, everybody would have the wrong image! But… but she wasn’t like that! She didn’t just… _sleep_ with strangers! She wasn’t a slut! She slowly let her hands down. But now that she was looking, there were indications of the _act_ – that had _not_ happened – everywhere. Their hair was disheveled, she was still red from the sobbing earlier and the unmade beds could –

“Shit. When did that happen?!”

She forced her inappropriate thoughts to the back of her mind and frowned at the almost naked – he was thankfully still wearing his boxers – boy next to her.

“How can you strip without knowing?”

“It was part of my training.”

That… didn’t make sense at all. What kind of – _oh_. 

She went red. As she had come to learn, most members were orphans and had lived on the streets for some time. And if you were alone on the streets and the pay was good enough… That would explain how nonchalant he was about stripping in public…

“Oh.”

And it would make the _other_ scenario even more probable. Oh Shinigami, she just hoped Mirajane wouldn’t choose _this_ moment to go check out the infirmary. And what was she even supposed to say to _that_? I’m glad you got out? Just change the topic entirely?

“Hey, you – you okay?”

“I – I have nothing against it. I – I wouldn’t go to one myself but – but,… I’m glad you got out?”

It came out as a question. He frowned. She hid her face in her hands in embarrassment. Shinigami, why didn’t she just stay quiet?!

“Wouldn’t go to one myself? What do you – _Oh._ ”

His eyes widened. 

“Fuck! No! Not _that_ kind of training! I didn’t work in a brothel or a strip club or anything like that! It’s just… my teacher – before I came here – is- _was_ very traditional. I’m a weapon, too. A halberd, to be exact. It was traditionally used in Mongolia or Switzerland or other cold countries like that. So she always made us strip in the cold to ‘embrace the weapon’. But then – well, I guess it became a habit now. I really don’t notice it when I start taking off my clothes. I’m used to it by now. It’s actually the people around me that get more uncomfortable.”

Lucy let out a breath she didn’t know she had been holding. She was glad he wasn’t a former prostitute. Not that she thought he would jump on her or something if he was. It was just… unnerving. Inappropriate. Doing something so personal for money. She laid her head against the wall and relaxed. There clearly was more to the story than he’d told her, but she wouldn’t question him about his slip-ups. Both said nothing for a while, Lucy’s deep breaths the only sound interrupting the silence. 

“And you’re a shotgun, huh? Flamebrain went crazy when he found out you would be his weapon, you know? Kept annoying me, fantasizing about how you would be.”

“You mean Natsu?”

Lucy couldn’t contain her small smile when he nodded. It was good to know she wasn’t the only excited one about their partnership. 

“Yeah. My condolences, by the way, he’s a fucking moron.”

She wanted to defend her meister, but the images of him trying to explain how fire could defeat all other elements combined without 'breaking a sweat' made her mouth snap shut.

“He may be a bit… dense sometimes. But he’s a great partner and I’m glad that he’s my meister!”

The blue-eyed boy just chuckled and affectionally ruffled her hair. 

He was saying something, but she wasn't listening. She slowly touched her hair with her own fingertips. At the place where _his_ had been only moments before. She stared at him, for once not bothered by his state of undress. He smirked at her, clearly trying to hold in hid laughter. Wait… was he… teasing her? Wasn’t that… wasn’t that something that… _friends_ did? _Siblings_ , even? Affectionately tease each other?

Did he already consider her a part of his family? 

“Let’s say it like that. Don’t expect to get too _far_ with him.”

It took her a second to process his words.

“… what do you mean?”

“I wouldn’t recommend wearing new clothes in your first… mission. Or white ones.”

She frowned.

“Wha-“

“I’m just messing with you. I’m sure your first mission will be… _sick.”_

He was full out laughing now. Lucy smiled. She had no idea what was so funny – though she was sure she would soon have the (dis)pleasure to find out – but his laughter was infectious.

“What is it?”

She was whining now, but she didn’t care. She didn’t know how they did it, but it was just so _easy_ to talk to her guildmates. It was almost scary how comfortable she felt with them after only a day. It somehow felt like they knew each other forever.

“You’ll find out soon enough.”

She barely understood him between his barks of laughter. An evil glint appeared in her eyes. If he wasn’t going to tell her, she’d just have to force him. It was her right to know, after all. Being Natsu’s partner and all. She hadn’t spent much time in Fairy Tail yet, but one thing she knew. A student in the FTWMG never gave up. She crept closer. Her victim was still distracted, laughing like there was no tomorrow, and – oh Shinigami. 

She barely managed to stop herself. Thankfully he was too busy snickering to notice her hovering finger. She quickly retracted it before inconspicuously inching a bit away. What was she thinking? Poking a person she’d just met? Sure, he’d ruffled her hair earlier. But did this really mean that they were… _friends_? What if he got angry at her? Or maybe _she_ was the problem. Maybe she should just loosen up a bit? Was she too stiff for Fairy Tail? But… wouldn’t it be weird? They just met each other!

The reminder of their meeting just made everything worse. Shinigami, she still could see some residues of her snot on his chest. He was probably just here because he felt obligated after what happened and maybe a bit pity as well and – 

“I’m just kidding. I’m sure you’re going to make a great team.”

She looked up. He wasn’t laughing anymore, a little small on his face instead. 

“Oh. Uh… thanks. And...s-sorry.”

He frowned, but she continued before he could open his mouth. She wanted to get it all out before her sudden rush of courage snuffed out. She knew that she would torture herself over and over if she didn’t apologize properly. Well, she still would regardless. But maybe it would torture her a bit less.

“Sorry for– for getting snot all over you. And for breaking down like that.”

“No-“

“And _thank you,_ –“

Her eyes widened. Only now did she realize that she didn’t even know his name. Shinigami, she had sobbed on a person she didn't even know the name of -

“Gray.”

She nodded and smiled at him. She still found it surprising how easy it was to genuinely _smile_ here.

“Yeah, Gray.”

He stood up and offered her his hand. 

“Ready to go downstairs now? I’m sure Flamy is already looking for you.”

As if to confirm his words, a loud _thump_ came from downstairs. Followed by a loud “Luuuuuuuuuuuuuushiiiiiii!” that could only come from said pink-haired boy.

She took his hand and let herself be hoisted up. 

oOo

As soon as Lucy was in visual range, her meister started running in their direction. Both almost fell down the stairs when the overexcited boy crashed against her.

“Where were you? You can’t just leave your partner behind like that!”

“Oi con’t wreathe!”

Natsu ignored his flailing partner and glared at her companion instead. 

“Don’t spend too much time with him, Luce! Stripping might be contagious! And what is that on your chest, ice popsicle? Looks like a baby snotted all over you, you idiot!”

“Snotting isn’t even a word, you flaming moron!”

Suddenly Lucy was incredibly glad that Natsu was almost suffocating her. He couldn’t see her red face if he was pressing it against his chest. 

“Shut up you – !”

He abruptly stopped. The blonde could feel how all his muscles suddenly tensed up. He stared at Gray’s chest – ignoring the other’s jabs of being a pervert, which was already a telling sign of how serious the young man was – before looking back to his partner. He gently pushed her away from him and frowned when she didn’t look at him. He cupped her chin and carefully raised her head until brown eyes met onyx. Lucy couldn’t suppress the bright red flush that appeared on her cheeks. She’d never been so close to her meister before. She hadn’t been so close to _anyone_ outside of her own blood before – unless you counted her hug with Gray. But this somehow felt… different. She could feel his warm breath puffing on her face. She had never realized he had freckles. He was staring intently at her face, almost as if he was searching for something. Only now did she see that his eyes were actually a very dark shade of green, not black like she’d thought previously. Her pulse was quickening. The more she looked, the more mesmerizing his eyes became. The iris was sprinkled with specks of black and what almost looked… golden. He –

Before she could admir- _observe_ him any more, his face was suddenly gone. Lucy needed another second to return to reality.

“Did you make her cry?”

Those words managed to break her from her trance pretty quickly. His question, which sounded more like a statement, had lost the playful edge from before. He was practically growling, staring at his guildmate in pure fury.

A shiver ran down her spine. Suddenly she could imagine this goofy and happy boy killing kishin all too easily. Suddenly the prospect of Natsu with a shotgun became terrifying for an entirely different reason. She remembered asking herself how he would look like when serious. She had no problems picturing it now.

But before she could mull any longer on how terrifying her meister could be, he attacked. Lucy’s eyes widened. Thankfully Gray didn’t transform into his weapon form. It almost seemed that she was rooted on the spot, only being able to watch as Natsu and Gray attacked while screaming insults at one another. It took a particularly hard punch from Natsu – she really hoped the _crack_ that followed was only part of her imagination – to finally snap her out of it. 

“Hey – stop! It wasn’t his fault, Natsu! He was just comforting me!”

She looked around in desperation, but somehow the guild seemed oblivious to the fight raging right in front of their noses. She didn’t want to cause a scene, but if they didn’t stop fighting because of this misunderstanding or Gray lost his patience and transformed his arm or started hating her because his friend was fighting him because of _her_ or if either of them got seriously hurt and it was _her_ fault or –

Lucy almost jumped when she suddenly felt a tap on her shoulder. She turned around, only to come face to face with the little blue-haired girl that had caught her eye when she first entered the guild. She sighed in relief. Normally she wouldn’t put faith in such a small person to stop a fight between two almost full grown men, but she had been a member for longer than her. She surely would know what to do.

“We need to stop them! I-it was a misunderstanding! I – Gray was just comforting me but Natsu –“

Lucy could only gape when, instead of telling them to stop or step between them, the girl just rolled her eyes.

“Don’t worry, they do this all the time. You’ll get used to it. At least they aren’t doing it in the middle of the guild this time. Because then it would turn into a full out guild brawl. And gramps would kill them if they broke another wall. C’mon, let’s go get a drink at the bar. My treat.”

“But…” 

The blonde was so dumbfounded it was an easy task for the young woman to drag her to the bar. 

_Another._ Broke _another_ wall.

“My name is Levy. And you’re Lacy, right?”

The blonde ripped her gaze away from the still fighting boys and smiled nervously at Levy.

“It's actually Lucy. Are you sure it’s okay to – ?”

She gestured vaguely to the stairs, where Gray was giving Natsu a very painful looking kick to the gut. She wasn’t even surprised when Levy just laughed it off – she was beginning to realize that her first impression of this place hadn’t been too wrong – everybody _was_ insane. What _did_ surprise her was what the girl said next.

“ _Diese Vollpfosten”_

Lucy blinked. She could be wrong – Levy had only mumbled under her breath in a room full of loud people after all –, but this sounded an awful lot like…

“ _Is that Boscian?”_

Levy’s eyes widened. The blonde grew flustered by the sheer brightness of the other girl’s beam.

“ _You speak it too?! I barely know anyone who speaks it here in the middle of Fiore!”_

 _“I didn’t expect it either! I thought I had heard wrong!”_

Lucy’s pronunciation wasn’t as good as Levy’s – Boscian was harsher than Fiorean and she had difficulties to articulate the tough, guttural sounds that were so typical for the language. Lucy had had to learn it to be able to negotiate with Fiore’s neighboring country Bosco. She hadn’t expected to use it much, especially not after she had finally gathered the courage to leave the mansion behind. Especially not in a place like this.

And yet here she was, once again surprised by Fairy Tail.

“ _Where did you learn it?_ ”

In her travels, she hadn’t seen a single school teaching it. The relationship between both countries hadn’t always been the best, but it had achieved a new peak when Fiore made witches illegal and started hunting them. _Only_ Fiore. The people living on the border hadn’t felt safe and –

Lucy shuddered. Just thinking about it was awful. The slaughter wrote history – fioreans attacking in the middle of the night, killing anyone who stood in their way. Their aim: exterminate all witches.

_“I was actually born in Bosco. And you?”_

Lucy’s eyes widened. She didn’t know what to say for a second. She just hoped Levy came from one of the few villages that had been left in peace – although she doubted it. The little teen probably wouldn’t be here otherwise. 

_“My – my dad wanted me to learn it.”_

Levy nodded but thankfully didn’t question her any further. The only person here who knew of her current predicament was the headmaster, and she didn’t want that to change anytime soon. 

_“How has your first real day in Fairy Tail been so far?”_

“ _It’s been pretty great!_ ” – if she didn’t mention her breakdown earlier or her embarrassment at the all-you-can-eat. Her mortification – she didn’t think she would ever be able to get over it – over their banishment of the restaurant must’ve been written on her face.

“ _What did he do?_ ”

“ _You mean Natsu? N – nothing_ ”

She only raised a brow

 _“Okay… we may have been thrown out of the new all-you-can-eat_.”

“ _Wow, after three visits! I think this is a new record!_ ”

“ _Please tell me it’s not the_ longest _he was allowed to eat in a restaurant._ ”

She laughed.

“ _Don’t worry – it’s the opposite! But tell me, what did that idiot do this time?_ ”

So she started retelling what had happened - starting with his disgusting eating-manners, continuing with the boss of the establishment, who politely asked them to leave because Natsu was eating their whole buffet. Her face got red all over again when she remembered how, instead of just leaving, he stood up and started loudly arguing with the boss. And finally, how they were thrown out - _everybody_ had been staring. She was about to tell how they ran all the way from the center of Magnolia to the guild when something behind the bar made her stop mid-sentence. 

Lucy’s words got stuck in her throat when she saw Mirajane coming from the back of the bar. More specifically, when she saw what she was holding in her hands.

Her pink backpack.

“Sorry I didn’t give it to you earlier! But you were greeting everyone and then you suddenly disappeared… I hope you didn’t miss it!”

Lucy laughed nervously when an image of the – now devastated – infirmary came to her mind. 

“No! Not at all!”

But she was too happy to see her backpack safe and intact to worry about _that_. For now, at least. As soon as the pink bag was in range, she grabbed and unzipped it. A little bag filled with her toiletries. A crop top. And… _there_. Safely stored between the top and a miniskirt. The picture. 

She carefully took it out. Three blonds, beaming in the camera. Pure, genuine joy. Exactly like she remembered. Lucy almost started crying again – this time in relief. 

When she looked up again, Mirajane was gone. She carefully put the photograph back into her bag and eyed the girl next to her. She was already feeling pretty comfortable with her and there was something she had wanted to ask her ever since she first saw her yesterday.

“Say, do you like Soul Eater?”

Lucy knew she had done something right when the other girl’s eyes started sparkling. 

“Do I _like_ it? I love it!”

The blonde smiled. She knew this excitement all too well. Fictional warriors, mages, and princesses would often be her only company in the empty estate. 

“I got so excited when I saw you reading it yesterday! Where are you at?”

“I’m actually _re_ reading it! And you?”

oOo

Turned out their love for Soul Eater wasn’t the only thing both girls had in common. It seemed that Lucy had finally found someone who was as big of a fangirl as her – if not more. No matter if Rick Riordan, John Green, or Stephen King – Levy had read it all. 

They were in the middle of a heaty discussion about whether Mirajane should be in Hufflepuff or in Slytherin when a loud shout interrupted the blue-haired girl mid-sentence. She cast a dirty look at the entrance – where the scream came from – only for her glare to turn into a frown when she saw two men waving at her.

She threw Lucy an apologetic glance and stood up.

“Sorry, I have to go.” 

Lucy frowned.

“Where are you going?”

Her eyes widened. She hadn’t meant to say that out loud. It was none of her business! 

Fortunately, Levy didn’t seem to mind. 

“Just a town over. We’re going on a mission! I know that we all just get our first official assigned mission tomorrow, but it is technically allowed for all students to go on them the whole school year. I was just waiting for my partner to get ready.”

Lucy let her gaze wander searchingly through the guild, but she couldn’t see him anywhere. 

“Where is he? I can’t see him”

“Oh, they’re over there!” 

She pointed at the entrance, where a lanky blond boy was impatiently tapping his feet while a black-haired one was munching a bag of what appeared to be chips.

Oh. She had assumed the tall black-haired guy full of piercings was the partner they were talking about, but apparently, she had been wrong. They _had_ made quite the unconventional couple. 

“Which one of – wait, _they_?!”

“Yeah, both. Droy, the one with black hair – he always eats when he’s nervous. But I can’t blame him, it’s our first mission after all! – is a sheath and Jet is a Kyoketsu-Shoge. Together we are Team Shadowgear! I wonder where Gajeel and Juvia are…”

“There are more?!”

The concept of using two weapons already seemed alien to the blonde. But four? At the same time?!

“Ah, no. They aren’t a part of Shadowgear. But we aren’t allowed to take missions alone before the assignments, so we are bringing them along.”

“Is Gajeel that tall guy full of piercings who was talking with you yesterday?”

“More like bothering me!”

Was it only her imagination or was Levy blushing?

“Anyway, I have to go now! It was great talking to you, Lucy! We definitely should meet again. _It was great to be able to just fangirl._ _All these morons here just don’t read!_ Bye! I hope we share some classes!”

Lucy had to suppress a laugh. It sure was convenient that both spoke a language nobody else did. 

“ _Tschüss!_ ”

“ _Auf Wiedersehen!”_

And in the next second, the little blue-haired girl was gone.

oOo

Lucy was bored.

After Levy left, she went to the bar. But Mirajane couldn’t chat much, too busy working. At least the strawberry milkshake – on the house! – was good. Nobody came to talk to her. Probably scared away from when she ran off, only to come back as a complete mess an hour later. While she would have felt relieved earlier, now it was just annoying. She was too scared to just start a conversation, but she would’ve loved to talk a bit more. Just her luck – when she actually was in a social mood, everyone she knew was busy. 

She glanced at the two boys. They still were fighting at the stairs, both sweating and gasping but neither looking like they wanted to give up. Lucy got the feeling they could continue their fight for days out of sheer stubbornness. 

Well, Lucy didn’t have the whole day. She wanted to get comfortable in her new house – Natsu had said it was in the middle of the forest, which was like a half an hour walk – and she wanted to sleep early so she could be at her best tomorrow when her classes started.

And she was bored. 

So she went over to them to get her partner.

She tried stopping them verbally at first.

“Hey!”

Nothing.

“Guys! Stop fighting!”

The only response was a hard shove from Natsu’s side.

“Seriously! Natsu! I want to go to the house!”

This time he meister actually looked at her. But before she could get her hopes up, Gray delivered a kick to his shin and they were right at it again. 

Okay. She’d have to change tactics then. 

She closed her eyes and concentrated. She could feel as each molecule of her arm transformed, flesh turning into metal. When she opened her eyes, her left arm had transformed into the barrel of a shotgun.

They were still fighting as if nothing had happened. Obviously. 

She looked helplessly at her transformed arm. What now? She couldn’t just _shoot_ them! Or make a hole in the wall – no matter what of a normal occurrence that apparently was! But if she could get between them…

The look on their faces was downright comical when a metal bar suddenly appeared right in front of their faces. 

“C’mon, Natsu. Let’s go to your house!”

She was so proud of herself – she had accomplished what even Levy, who lived here her whole life, hadn’t dared! –, she didn’t notice the approaching figure until she was right behind her.

“Very well done. Licy, I believe? My name is Erza Scarlet and I am happy to welcome you to the Fairy Tail Weapon Meister Guild.”

Lucy’s eyes widened when she saw who exactly was praising her. Erza seemed to be the personification of confidence. What first caught the blonde’s eye was her hair – a beautiful scarlet shade, just like her name suggested. Shortly followed by her attire – a metal armor that gleamed intimidatingly in the dim lights of the guild. She radiated fearlessness and strength. 

Why was everyone in the guild so damn beautiful?

“He-hey Erza!”

She was ripped out of her stupor by the two – now thankfully not fighting – idiots. Lucy got the feeling that whoever was so stupid to start a fight with her wouldn’t live to tell the tale. And apparently, she wasn’t the only one. Both boys were hugging each other with clearly fake smiles on their faces and unconcealed fear in their eyes.

“I should punish you for fighting again.”

Lucy couldn’t suppress a shiver from running down her spine. And the glare wasn’t even directed at _her_. Both boys were clearly trembling now.

“But I see that Licy already took care of that. Good job.”

"I-It's actually Lucy."

Lucy was almost scared to interrupt the scarlet-haired woman, but it was only the polite thing to do, right? To correct her if she accidentally said something wrong?

"Right. Excuse me, Lucy."

The redhead smiled at her before continuing her glaring match – more like _slaughter,_ actually – with the boys. Lucy beamed at the praise. Finally, something she did right. 

“Now, Natsu. Accompany your weapon to your residence. And I’m sure he’ll be delighted to carry your luggage for you, Lucy.”

“Ah, no, don’t worry. It’s not much, just this little backpack.”

Erza’s previously pleasant smile froze on her face. Lucy almost started trembling as the intimidating woman glared at her as if she grew a second head.

“Excuse me, I believe I misheard you. Did you just say that all your current possessions fit in this small bag?”

Lucy nodded uncertainly. The ginger narrowed her eyes at her, before grabbing her shoulder and dragging her towards the doors. It happened so fast the blonde didn’t even have time to object. Although she probably wouldn’t have even if she could. With this determined glint in her eyes, Erza looked almost scarier than when she’d been scolding the boys. One glare thrown over her shoulder and said boys followed. 

“I believe that clothes are our biggest priority at the moment.”

It took Lucy a second to realize what she was talking about. _Clothes? Did she mean… as in shopping?_

“W-wait! I barely have any money! You don’t –“

“Do not fret. I am sure the boys will be elated to pay for your spending. Right boys?”

Natsu and Gray, who had been glaring at each other, immediately started hugging one another and nodded when Erza turned around. Lucy wasn’t sure they even knew what they had just agreed to. 

“But –“

“See it as a welcome present.”

“Yes, bu –“

“Do you like Heart Kreuz? I heard they recently opened a new store I still didn’t have the pleasure to appraise.” 

Lucy sighed as she gave up. But hey, she had always wanted to go shopping with a friend. This was the perfect opportunity! She could always repay the poor boys when she finally earned her own money.

“Let’s go!” 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey there!  
> Thank you so much for the bookmarks and kudos! And I hope you enjoyed the second chapter! I originally wanted to put the shopping trip here too, but this was already way too long - you'll just have to wait for the next chapter! Which I probably won't be able to post for (at least) a month. Because I'll be busy with the NaLu week and the Soul Eater reverb! (Look forward to the first July week ;) )  
> As you may or may not have noticed, GrayLu is my absolute BrOtp - so you'll definitely see more of that. And Lucy will also be going to her first mission soon! (presumably in two chapters, to be more precise, but we'll see...)  
> I'd love to hear what you're thinking of this so far, so don't be shy to leave a Comment!
> 
> P.s. Kishin and witches are basically the beings that are hunted by the DWMA Students in Soul Eater. But I'll explain more about that and how the guilds work in the next chapter - Lucy's first classes!
> 
> Have a great day and (hopefully) until the next chapter!

**Author's Note:**

> Hey there!
> 
> I've been wanting to write a SE au for so long! I love both mangas but I couldn't find an au anywhere - so here is mine! This has actually been on my laptop for a while - I started it before the SoMa Week and finished it like a week after 'cuz I missed writing those dorks (it only took so long before there was something else I wanted to finish before I posted this) It was supposed to be pure fluff, but I was a bit anxious while writing so it turned into... this. Hope you enjoyed it anyway! I might continue this if it gets a good response, so don't forget Kudos, Bookmarks and Comments if you liked it!
> 
> P.s. For those who don't know, Shinigami means God of Death in Japanese. In Soul Eater he's the director of the DWMA (death weapon meister academy). I just used it instead of 'god' in here. Lucy basically uses it instead of cursing since she was raised without any swearwords
> 
> P.s 2. If you haven't read/watched Soul Eater, do it. I promise you won't regret it. I personally prefer the manga, but the anime is great, too (especially the opening!)
> 
> Have a great day!


End file.
